


That's Us

by nerearobinsonn



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: Drunk Clay, Drunk Zach, Fluff, Idiots in Love, M/M, They Love Each Other So Much And It Hurts, They are so cute, Tragedy, clay jensen is a drunk meme but he knows what is going on with zalex, high alex, what should have happened on 4x05, zach plays the piano for alex, zalex canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:41:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24860977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nerearobinsonn/pseuds/nerearobinsonn
Summary: "And he promised himself that he would do whatever it took to make Alex happy, because he was the person who he loved the most. He would do whatever it took, even sacrifice his own happiness."This fanfic takes place in 4x05 and this is what should have happened on the party and after, because Zach was meant to go to sleep on Alex's house and the writers took that away from us so I wanted to write something :).
Relationships: Clay Jensen & Alex Standall, Justin Foley & Alex Standall, Justin Foley & Clay Jensen, Zach Dempsey & Clay Jensen, Zach Dempsey & Justin Foley, Zach Dempsey/Alex Standall
Comments: 6
Kudos: 67





	That's Us

**Author's Note:**

> I recommend you to listen "That's Us" by Anson Seabra while you are reading the beggining of this fanfic, you'll understand why later ;) 
> 
> Well, in case you are still here, I hope you enjoy this fanfic!
> 
> PD: sorry if there are any grammatical mistakes, I'm from spain.

Alex said goodbye to Charlie when it was already 6 in the morning. The two of them had spent the whole night in a room watching the movie Alex had put on and talking about life.

Alex had not wanted to come to that and that's why he got into the room. If he was at that party it was because of Zach, because his friend wanted him to go with him and Alex, despite the fact that his head said no, his heart told him yes. He could not refuse anything his friend asked him to do.

Alex left the room looking for Zach, because Zach was going to sleep at his home. The party was already declining and there were not many people left. Alex realized that he was wobbling a little and that he was looking a little fuzzy, and he realized that it was from the effect of Charlie's cookies that he had eaten, since they carried drugs. He felt very light and happier than he had in a while. He felt like he felt on the rooftop the night he kissed Zach. Only on that roof he didn't need drugs, just the company of that boy.

Zach, he recalled, he was looking for Zach.

Suddenly he realized that a piano tune was playing in the back of the room, and Alex instinctively was led to the music. Around the piano was a small group of people listening to the song, and Alex's heart almost stops when he saw the person sitting in front of the piano.

Zach was playing a tune to a song that Alex knew perfectly well. He didn't know if Zach was playing it for something specific, but Alex thought about a lot of moments, and all those moments were related to the boy who was playing the piano.

Alex, without realizing it, had placed himself in front of the group and Zach, noticing the presence of his friend, raised his head and met Alex's gaze, and what he saw broke his heart. His friend had a look that he had never seen, in that look he could see a lot of love, so much love that Zach could not bear it, because he did not deserve it. He didn't deserve Alex's love, or anyone else's. Still, his heart skipped a beat, and Zach didn't know if it was because of all the alcohol he had drunk that night and so he couldn't control himself, but he smiled at his friend like he'd never smiled at anyone and kept playing the song. He kept playing the song he had instinctively started to play and with which he realized he was playing by and for Alex.

The two boys felt like all the people in the room disappeared and there where only the two of them, Alex and Zach, two boys who claimed to be just friends, but who both knew that this was not true.

They didn't break the eye contact and by the end of the song, Zach dared to sing the last paragraph:

“I can take the fall, the pain, the pleasure  
And you can take it all, for worse, or better  
But oh, what if we're wrong?  
What if we're not all that we thought?  
Then we won't make it along  
But hey, I guess that's love.”

Clay, who was very drunk, was watching the scene of Zach and Alex, and without knowing why, he began to cry when he observed them. Maybe it was that the alcohol had affected him a lot, or maybe it was because of the fact that he was overflowing with happiness at having lost his virginity, but the boy believed that what his friends were experiencing was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

When Zach stopped playing the piano, he looked at his friend for a few seconds until his mind cleared and he shook his head as if wanting to get away from certain thoughts that came to his mind and before anyone knew it, he returned to put on the mask he wore every day and commented out loud:

"I hope you all liked it, I dedicate this song to all of you, my friends."

Instantly he saw Alex frown and the illusion leaving his eyes, and that broke Zach's heart. And he couldn't bear it. He couldn't bear to think that he was the cause of Alex's suffering. In the distance he saw Clay and it was his perfect opportunity to escape from the moment and to escape from his thoughts with his friend and above all, with more alcohol. So he walked past Alex, but his friend grabbed his arm and Zach turned around surprised and heard Alex ask:

"Where are you going?"

Zach realized that he was very drunk because he was reeling despite the fact that Alex was still holding his arm.

"I'm going with my great friend Clay to get drunk." Zach replied dragging his words by how drunk he was and letting go of Alex's grip.

"You're already drunk, Zach." Alex said, but he didn't know why, while he said that he started laughing. Lie, he knew it, and it was from the effect of the drug.

Damn Charlie's cookies, they didn't let him think rationally. In his situation, it would be impossible to get Zach out of the party.

Zach took that laugh as a way to continue drinking and put an arm around Alex's shoulders as the two of them staggered toward Clay.

And how could Alex resist that? He just couldn't. He was in the arms of the boy who he was in love with.

Wait, did his mind really just say that? Alex was in love with Zach? It couldn't be, Zach was just his friend and it was clear that winter night on the roof. He couldn't be in love with Zach. Those thoughts were an effect of the drug, he was sure.

"Claaaaaaay!!" Zach yelled, letting go of Alex and opening his arms to his other friend.

"Come on, my favorite duo!" Clay yelled and passed the bottle that he was drinking to Zach and the taller boy took a drink. 

"How is my favorite non-virgin?" Zach asked Clay, a fact that surprised Alex. When had Clay lost his virginity?

"You owe me your car Zach. Leave me your car right now."

At that answer Zach laughed out loud and took one last sip of the bottle of alcohol and then he threw it to the ground and the bottle shattered, which made both Zach and Clay burst out laughing.

"Come on, take us for a ride, Jensen." Zach replied. "Alex, you're coming, right?"

Alex was high, but he knew he had never seen Clay so drunk, and he wasn't able to drive any car. None of the three were.

"Zach, wait, we can't..."

Alex was trying to convince the two boys in front of him that they couldn't drive a car in the state they were in, but it was worthless. Neither Zach nor Clay were aware of what they were doing, and Alex wasn't sober enough to  
stop them.

The three of them staggered to where Zach's car was, and luckily for Alex, Justin showed up just when Clay was going to start the car.

"Where the hell are you going?!" Justin shouted, clearly angry and luckily, sober. "Do you want to kill yourself?!"

All Zach and Clay did in response was laugh out loud and it infuriated more Justin, who walked over to the pilot seat and started getting Clay out of the car as he tried to resist.

Zach started complaining but Justin didn't mind, he ended up throwing Clay on the backseat next to Alex, and then he settled into the front seat and instantly tore off Zach's car.

"The first stop is going to be your house, Dempsey." Justin said as he got into the road and left the party.

Zach immediatly gave a boat while replying:

"No! I'm staying at Alex's!"

Justin raised an eyebrow and through the rearview mirror looked at Alex, asking him if that was true.

"It's true, Zach is staying at my house tonight." Alex replied and, without knowing why, he felt his cheeks turn red.

An effect of the drug he had taken, he thought.

Justin nodded and headed towards Alex's house. The journey passed in silence except for Clay's screamings saying nonsense. 

When they got to Alex's house, Justin explained that he would return the car to Zach tomorrow, to which both boys agreed and said goodbye to their friend.

It was almost seven in the morning, and Alex didn't want to wake his parents up so he forced Zach to take off his shoes before entering and the two of them entered trying to not make any noise while going on tiptoe, although it was in vain because Zach, who was very drunk, started laughing.

Alex unconsciously turned around and put a hand on his friend's mouth, but that only had made Zach laugh more.

"Damn it Zach, you're going to wake them up." Alex whispered, staring at the boy who was in front of him, but he couldn't be mad at him. He couldn't get mad at the boy who had that joy in his eyes.

In the end, Alex couldn't contain himself and laughed out loud, covering his face trying not to make noise. 

Suddenly, Zach got closer to Alex, just as he approached that day in the boat, but at the moment they heard a murmur:

"I assume the party is over, right?"

The two boys turned suddenly to meet Alex's father, and to Zach's and Alex's relief, the man had a big smile on his face.

"Sorry dad, now we go up to sleep, is that..." Alex started, but his father cut him off and he gestured for them to go up the stairs to the rooms.

The two boys thanked him and for Alex's surprise, Zach was able to behave. It didn't matter how drunk he was, Zach in front of an adult was always able to behave.

Zach was in the lead, he knew his friend's house perfectly since he had been there so many times, especially last year when he helped him recover. 

Alex was surprised to see Zach enter to his own room. They had agreed at the institute that Zach would sleep in the guest room, although Alex must have admit that he didn't care about sleeping with Zach and that he was even excited.

Alex closed the door carefully in order to not wake his mother up, and as he turned he saw that Zach had already laid on his stomach on his bed. Alex couldn't help but smile with a love he only felt towards that boy. It was a very difficult feeling to explain, he had never felt like this for anyone, not even for Jessica.

Alex shook his head as if to get those thoughts off him, and said:

"You're not even going to change your clothes?"

Zach turned and rolled onto his back on the bed, staring at Alex as he replied with a mischievous smile on his face:

"Your clothes won't fit me, my dear Standall."

Alex rolled his eyes and instantly smiled, just like he had done this morning in the hallways of the institute. Zach had the talent of making him smile, even when he least expected it.

"Well, I am going to change."

"I'll be waiting for you." Zach replied with a mocking gesture.

Alex did not answer and he went to change to the bathroom, but Zach did not escape the smile that his friend put on his face and that made him not be able to erase that silly smile that had formed into his own face.

He lay on his back with his arms behind his head, and thought about all the moments he had lived with his friend and, above all, how they had always been for each other, no matter what happened. And at that moment, Zach realized that, above all his friends, the one who had always been for him, especially now that he was behaving this way, was always Alex. Alex was the person who never failed or abandoned him.

Zach was lost in thoughts and almost fell asleep until he felt a presence at his side. Alex was adjusting himself on the bed, trying not to touch his friend and failing in the attempt, since the bed was not very big and Zach already took up a lot of space.

It was when suddenly Zach pulled Alex and the shorter one ended up almost on the top of the taller one, his arms and legs were wrapped around each other and the two boys started laughing nervously.

"It seems to me that we are not going to sleep very comfortably in this bed." Alex began, trying to unwind himself from Zach's body.

Zach couldn't help but feel an immense love for the boy who was next to him, the boy who had always helped him, who had made him smile every day, who was always by his side, and who would do anything for him.

"Oh, shut up."

Zach didn't know if it was the happiness of the moment, the euphoria, the thoughts about Alex or the alcohol, but he pulled his friend down and started kissing him on the lips.

At first Alex tensed because he wasn't expecting this at all, much less after what happened on the roof, but his heart dominated his head and he followed the kiss with desire.

And this kiss was very different from the one on that rooftop night. The two boys surrendered as never before, both enjoying the feel of each other's lips. It was a kiss that said what none of them dared to express with words.

Zach gained momentum and turned Alex around, now standing on top of the shorter one and intensifying the kiss more and more. Alex began to run his hands through Zach's hair and Zach turned the kiss towards Alex's neck.

"Zach..."

Zach looked at Alex's eyes for a moment and was instantly kissing him again on the lips.

Alex knew that if they continued like this they wouldn't be able to stop. And he didn't want to stop, he was living the best moment of his life, but he also knew that his friend was drunk and that he probably wasn't in love with him.

Yes, Alex was in love with Zach, and this time he wasn't going to make the excuse that it was the drugs that made him think like that. Alex's heart only had room for one person and that person was Zach Dempsey.

And that's beacuse against his will, Alex cut the kiss, for his sake and for his friend's. He moved away from Zach and Zach stared at him strangely, but he didn't kiss Alex again, instead he layed on his back on the bed next to Alex while whispering "wow".

Alex didn't know what was going on through Zach's head, but his head was looped over the previous few minutes.

The two boys didn't say another word to each other and in the end the fatigue was taking over them and Alex was the first to fall asleep. Zach, who had not yet fallen asleep, rolled onto his side and stared at his friend. Alex looked so innocent and small, asleep and resting, that Zach's heart skipped a beat. He would do anything for this boy, and he would protect him from thick and thin.

Zach had never been in love, or at least he believed that, but what he felt whenever he was with Alex was something he had never felt for anyone.. He couldn't help but look at him as if he was who he loved most in this world, a fact that Zach realized was true, and he promised himself that he would do whatever it took to make Alex happy, because he was the person who he loved the most. He would do whatever it took, even sacrifice his own happiness.

And then Zach realized that that was love. Sacrifices like this were made because you were in love, and Alex Standall was the most important thing he had in his life.

And that's why Zach got out of the bed, but not before removing a lock of Alex from his eyes and leaving his hand a moment on his face while stroking it with his thumb and whispering "I love you." He left the room, taking one last look at the most important person in his life, and he went to the front door.

Zach left the Standall's house thinking about the state in which he found himself. With his behavior and his dangerous actions, the only thing that he could do was making Alex unhappy and putting him in danger, and his friend deserved better. He deserved someone better. Even though Zach knew the two of them were in love, they couldn't be together. Zach was unable to make Alex happy.

What Zach didn't know was that the happiest Alex felt was when he was with him, and that no matter what state he was in, he would always be there for him, no matter what.

As Zach wandered aimlessly through town thinking about Alex and how tragic it was to be in love, Alex woke up as if he felt something was missing and found the bed empty and thought what he had already feared: that Zach didn't feel the same way about him.


End file.
